Agricultural products increase in Kurdistan

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources announced that local agricultural products have increased despite the lack of funding to the agriculture sector.

During the Salahaddin University Forum last week, Abdulstar Majid, Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, told Kurdistan24, “Although it has been two years [and] the ministry has not received any budget, the agricultural products have increased."

According to Majid, the ministry is contributing to the revenue of the Kurdistan Region due to the implementation of the protection of local products policy.

The Ministry of Agriculture contributes 10 percent to Kurdistan’s national budget, and if the KRG provides more support and funding this rate will increase to 30 percent of contribution in the revenues for the government, Majid added.

Majid said that the Kurdistan Region is now exporting only three products which are potatoes, apples and wheat, stating that agriculture could alleviate the financial crisis the KRG is facing if more funds were provided.

Anwar Omer, the spokesperson of the KRG Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, told Kurdistan24 in late April that the Region “used to have 1.7 million hectares [of agriculture], but now we have 3.1 million.”

According to Omer, crop production is also expected to increase to nearly one million ton. Thus, Kurdistan will be self-sufficient because the Region only needs 600,000 tons of products.